Baggage rack for railroad passenger cars



5am. 2a 192a. I 1,570,631

c. P. HOWARD BAGGAGE RACK FORRAILROAD PASSENGER CARS Filed Jan. 1923 3 Sheets-Sheet Z ChczrZea 2? Howard Jan. 26 ,1926. 1,570,631

C. P. HOWARD BAGGAGE RACK FOR RAILROAD PASSENGER CARS Filed Jan. 6. 1923 l 3 Sheets-Shoot :5

gww'wto a I CharZes 2 Haward Patented Jan. 26, 1926.

UNITED STATES 1,570,631 PATENT foF FicE; 1

CHARLES P. HOWARD, OF HARTFORD, CONNECTICU'E', AQSIGNOR TO JAMES L. HOWARD AND COMPANY, OF HARTFORD, CONNECTICUT, A CORPORATION OF CONNECTICUT.

BAGGAGE RACK r'on RAILROAD :eAssEiie R cans.

Application filed January 26 1923. Serial No. 615,121.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that 1, CHARLES P. HOWARD, a citizen of the United States of America, and a resident of Hartford, Connecticut, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Baggage Racks for Railroad Passenger Cars, of which the following is a specification. f

This invention is an improvement in baggage racks for railroad passenger cars.

The principal object of-the invention is to provide a sectional baggage rack of the continuous type, which will present the least interference with headroom, and at the same time afford maximum amount of room for parcels and baggage, and will be abundantly strong.

By a sectional baggage rack, I mean, one in which the member's running between the wall-supporting brackets are assembled into aunitary structure, and are supported wholly by thebrackets so that in installing or taking down a baggage rack, the wall brackets: become one unit, and the interme-. diate sections another unit to be handled.

Inthe design'of baggage racks for passenger cars it must be borne in mind that the racks over-hangthe seats to be occupied by passengers, and thereforesuflicient head-room must be'provided to allow of the passengers getting into and out of p the seats, without danger of striking their heads or headdress}against'the racks. At the same time, the racksmust be placed sufficiently low as to be readily reached for the deposit and removal of baggage.

The problem w'hichhas confronted those skilled in the art, has been to provide .a rack which first will afford the greatest amount of room for baggage and parcels, and, second, will at the same time be readily accessible and afford the least interference with head-room. The first 'of these considerations requires that the rack be sufliciently wide to'rec'eiv'e' a suit-case, or similar article of luggage laid flat, and that the baggage space from end to end of-the rack beiuninterrupte'd: 'D'ue to'the width of the rack, and thev fact that the cumulative weight supported by it is ordinarily great, the secondconsideration requires that therack be strongly supported from the-wall of the car at a convenient height.

' lhe supports as provided [for racks have,

ing continuous uninterrupted baggage space, heretofore have taken the form of triangular shaped devices or trusses, an illustration of which is to be found in the patent to H. Mussey, No. 1,029,621. With this type of support, however, so much head-room is taken up by the support, that the rack has to be placed at a difficultly accessible height,

or else, if the rack is placed lower, interfer beam is used, and the leastpossible vertical depth is occupied with the result that maximum head-room is obtained with a convenient placing of'the rack, and at the same time, abundant'stre'ngth' is assured. 4

In the drawings which form a part of this application, I b

Figure 1 represents a view in perspective of a portion of a baggage rack' constructed according to my invention. is b Figure 2 is a't-r ansverse sectionalview on the line 2'2 of Figure 3, looking in the direction indicated by the arrows, and showing one of the transverse tie-members inelevation. I

Figure 3" is a top plan view of a portion of a'baggage-rackconstructed according to my invention, the view showing adjacent ends of bottom sections of the rack, and the supporting means for the rack.

Figure 4' is a transverse sectional view on the line M of Figure 3,. looking in the direction indicated fby the arrows, and showing one of the beam-supports in elevation.

b Figure 5 is a section takenlongitudinally of the rack onjthe line 5 5 of Figure 4, looking in the direction indicated by the arrows. e 1 1 1 Figure 6 is a plan view, similar to Figure 3, of another form of baggage rack constr c ed according to my invent on- Figure 7 is a transverse sectional View on the line 77 of Figure 6, looking in the direction indicated by the arrows.

Figure 8 is a plan view, similar to Figure 6, of another form of baggage rack, and

Figure 9 is a transverse sectional view on the line 9-9 of Figure 8, looking in the direction indicated by the arrows.

Referring more particularly to Figures 1 to 5, inclusive of the drawings, the rack is made up of a plurality of bottom sections A, the number used in eachinstance, depending upon the length of rack it is desired to furnish, each bottom section being upported by a pair of beam-supports B.

Thobo-ttom sections A each comprise a front longitudinal bar 5, a rear longitudinal bar 6, intermediate longitudinal bar 7, and a plurality of transverse tie members 8. The use of the word bar or bars, is intended to be general, it being understood that tubes may be employed in place of the bars. The transverse tie members 8 are. carried by the bars 5 and 6, and are provided at their ends with openings through which these bars pass. The bars 5 and 6 thus support the transverse tie members 8. These tie members in turn support and carry the intermediate bars 7, which bars pass through openings provided in the transverse tie members. The transverse tie members, at the ends of each section, are spaced slightly inwardly from the ends of the bars 5 and 6.

The beam supports B support the bars 5 and 6. It will thus be apparent that each bottom section is carried between a pair of beam supports, that these supports carry the front and rear bars 5 and 6, and that these bars in turn carry the transverse tie members which support the intermediate bars.

Each of the beam-supports B projects from a wall plate C, with which it is integrally formed, and the wall plate is provided at its upper and lower ends with openings for receiving screws, whereby the plate may be secured to the side wall of the car as shown. The beam support, in each instance, is of general I-section in formation, decreasing in vertical height towards its outer end. The inner end of the beam-support merges with the wall plate in web portions 10 and 11. The forward or outer end of the beam-support is provided with an eye 12, internally threaded to receive nuts 13. The ends of the bars 5 are flanged as at 9, and the flanged ends of the front longitudinal bars 5 of adjacent bottom sections pass into the eye 12, and nuts 13 slidably mounted on these bars have their threaded portions engaged and turned into the eye, thus binding the ends of the bars 5 against each other, and securing the bars in position at the outer end of the beam-support.

On the web portion 10 at the inner end of the beam-support, is formed a lug 14-.

having an eye 15 formed thereon, which eye at its opposite ends is provided with recesses, divided by a central partition 16, the recesses receiving the ends of the rear longitudinal bars 6 of adjacent bottom sections. The eye 15 is divided to form a cap 17 which is removed when the bars 6' are to be engaged with the eye, and which, after such engagement is replaced and held in position by a screw 18 threaded through the cap and into the partition 16, thus securing the bars in position. The transverse tie members 8 of the bottom section have their upper and lower edges gradually convex lengthwise, affording a bridge construction which increases the strength of these tie-members. The upper edge of the beamsupport is arranged substantially at the same height as the upper edges of the transverse tie-members 8 of the bottom section, and thus does not project up between the adjacent ends of the bottom sections. Thus the baggage space afforded by the sections is uninterrupted and clear from end to end of the rack, no matter how many sections the rack is composed of.

The beam-support is so constructed, as to be of substantially uniform modulus of rupture throughout its length. As an illustration, I have designed a beam-support in which, assuming a load of 200 pounds at its outer end, the tensile stress along the extreme upper fibres, and the compression stress along the extreme lower fibres, are the same practically throughout the whole length of the support, and at the section in dicated at aa a short distance from the head of the support, tensile and compression strains will be 17,700 pounds per square inch: further back'at section 6-4) 17,000 pounds per square inch; further back at section cc 18,400 pounds; at section d0l 19,700 pounds, and lastly, near the wall at section e-e 19,000 pounds. At any cross section taken between the head and the wall plate, the compression and tension strains at the bottom and top respectively, will be the same for any weight at the head of the rack. As a result of this, the least amount of metal necessary is used, and for a given thickness of metal. the least possible depth is needed. Thus the least interference with head room is obtained, and abundant strength is afforded.

In the modified types of the invention illustrated in Figures 6 to 9, inclusive of the drawings, while variations in form of the baggage rack are made, ,the same principles of construction heretofore set forth. have been employed.

In the form shown in Figures 6 and 7, the beam support B is substantially straight, and is inclined upwardly away from the wall plate C. The bottom sections A, including the transverse tie members 8,: are

also inclined upwardly to conform to the inclination of the beam support. The form shown in Figures 8 and 9 of the drawings, is similar to the type of rack shown in Figures 1 t0 5, except that the eye 15", in Figures 8 and 9, which supports the rear longitudinal bars 6" is lowered and carried at the rear of the beam support B, and the tie members 8 are substantially straight at their rear ends.

The foregoing description has been given for purpose of illustration, and no undue limitations should be deduced therefrom, but the claim should be construed as broadly as permissible, in view of the prior art.

Having thus described my invention what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is,-

In a sectional baggage rack for railway cars having uninterrupted space for baggage extending over a plurality of sections, the combination of a Wall plate having means for attachment to a wall, a single projecting beam support of substantially uniform modulus of rupture throughout its length tion formed integrally with said beam support and with said wall plate and extending upwardly from the beam support at the above the beam support and below the upper end of the wall plate, bottom sections on each side of said beam support having rear longitudinal bars supported in said lug and having front longitudinal bars sup-- ported in the free end of the beam support, transverse tie members carried by the front and rear longitudinal bars and having upper and lower edges gradually convex lengthwise, and intermediate bars supported in the transverse tie members intermediate the upper and lower edges thereof.

In testimony whereof I hereunto afiix my signature. I CHARLES P. HOWARD.

d projecting from the wall plate, a web por- 

